For some reason, she wasn’t afraid at all in the face of his fierce threats now. Whenever she thought about his bad mood, Aurora inexplicably felt happy. She didn’t know when it started, but she enjoyed this mutual hurt with Julian. Thinking about it, she found him rather endearing.
She ignored the text message; she certainly wouldn’t tell him that her phone was already on.
Going to him now would be like a lamb walking into a lion’s den. The man clearly had a strong desire for her, and if she really went, she might not be able to get out of bed not only tomorrow but perhaps even the day after!
Aurora opened her social media account; the news about Hayden had long ceased to be the topic of discussion.
She clicked on Susan’s profile. There was a message posted today:
“Thank you all for your support. Hayden and I love each other so deeply. I also believe in his character; he could never do such a thing. We have verified it, and that photo was manipulated…”
The likes had already reached three hundred thousand, with mixed comments below:
“I believe whatever Susan says!”
“Seriously, who would leave Susan for that mess of a woman?”
“Looking forward to your new movie.”
“I’m an expert in Photoshop, and I can responsibly say this photo isn’t edited. But since Susan doesn’t care, why should I?”
“Such a ‘good’ man indeed.”
Though Susan’s message seemed nonchalant, given her personality, she was probably furious by now.
Indeed, Aurora was not wrong. As soon as Hayden returned home, he was besieged by his family.
“Hayden, how could you be so careless? Even if you wanted to fool around, you shouldn’t leave evidence. Now, everyone is laughing at the Alvarez family,” his mother confronted him.
“Hayden, your grandfather is very angry about this. Aren’t you going to explain it to him?” his father said.
“Mom, Dad, I didn’t do those things. What am I supposed to explain?” Hayden had always been upright, and the Alvarez family had full confidence in him.
Watching him grow up, the considerable power of their family business was still in his grandfather’s hands, who valued Hayden immensely. It wouldn’t be long before his grandfather would transfer shares to him, and with this scandal breaking at such a critical juncture, his parents were naturally worried.
“You didn’t do it, but that photo is everywhere! Who is that woman? The Simmons family has already called! You and Susan are about to get engaged, how could you do this?!”
“Mom, there really isn’t another woman. That photo was a setup,” Hayden recalled how he had lost consciousness after drinking that night.
When he woke up in the morning, the door was unlocked, and his clothes were gone. Clearly, someone had meticulously planned to ruin him, aiming to destroy his reputation.
Unfortunately, his building had no surveillance; he didn’t even know who the woman was. Who wanted to harm him?
“Enough, whether there’s another woman or not, you need to appease the Simmons family and your grandfather first. The engagement must go smoothly.”
“I understand.”
Hayden managed to calm his grandfather’s anger, and only then did he return to his own home. When he arrived, someone was already there.
Susan slammed a photo on the table, “Hayden, what is this all about?”
“I’ve already explained it clearly on the phone. I didn’t do these things,” Hayden was already full of grievances and anger.
Towards Susan, his attitude had always been one of dislike; he had never loved her, and he even hated her.
If it hadn’t been for her drugging him years ago, and him mistaking her for Aurora, then Aurora would not have left heartbroken and vanished without a trace for three years. And he, out of responsibility, ended up with Susan.
“Is that woman in the photo me? Do you know how many media I faced today? The whole country is watching me, and you…”
“That’s your problem, I’m tired,” Hayden felt annoyed and went straight upstairs.